De Santis, Giuseppe, 1917-1997

Giuseppe De Santis was born in Fondi, Italy on February 11, 1917. Son of Oreste De Santis and Teresa Goduti, De Santis attended a Roman Catholic boarding-school. The family evntually moved to Rome where De Santis' father sought better employment as a civil engineer. De Santis entered the Liceo Giulio Cesare after finishing boarding school, and in 1937 he enrolled at the Facolta di Lettere (College of Liberal Arts) of the University of Rome. In 1935 De Santis attended the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografica, the state film school founded by Mussolini. A critic for the journal "Cinema", De Santis became part of a circle of men involved in politics and the arts. The "Cinema Circle" heavily influenced his criticism and later his film making. Considered by many to be one of the founding fathers of neorealism, De Santis began collaborating with other directors and screenwriters, including Luchino Visconti on "Ossessione (Obsession, 1943)". He made his directorial debut with "Caccia Tragica (Tragic Hunt, 1947)", and continued to make his greatest career success "Riso Amaro (Bitter Rice, 1949)". "Riso Amaro" broke all box office records, launched the career of Silvana Mangano, and introduced a new upfront eroticism into Italian cinema. De Santis continued making a wide range of films and achieving success, but lost his place in the spotlight in Italian cinema for many years. He was recognized in 1995 at the Venice Film Festival with a Golden Lion for his lifetime achievement. Giuseppe De Santis died in Rome in 1997 at the age of 80.

From the description of Giuseppe De Santis Papers circa 1947-1964 (Wake Forest University - ZSR Library). WorldCat record id: 680084234